Witcher 3 - Peview Roundup

“[It] will definitely impact your playthrough in The Witcher 3,” says executive producer John Mamais, speaking to Videogamer.
The extent of this impact hasn’t been revealed, but we can imagine that it’ll cover minor plot and characters details as the Mass Effect series’ save files did. If The Witcher 3 will be your first foray into the monster-hunting trilogy, or if you’re crossing over from console territory, however, know that the developers at CD Projekt RED are trying to figure out how to accommodate you too. “We might try to create some kind of game state even if you haven’t played,” says Mamais.

“We are not killing the world and walking away from it,” CEO Marcin Iwinski told Polygon during an E3 demo, “but we will definitely want to make this game the finale in a big way.”
“We might even include Geralt in later games potentially.”
The gorgeous-looking Witcher 3—whose breathtaking E3 trailer we shared a few days ago—will wrap up monster-hunter Geralt’s story nicely, though it’s great to know that the keenly realized kingdom of Temeria won’t be forever banished to history.

The Witcher series has been lauded for its exceptional storytelling and challenging, multifaceted combat. For The Witcher 3, CD Projekt Red is focusing on adding a massive open world to the mix. Our demo showed off just a tiny corner of that world, but revealed five new facts that will please fans of the expansive RPG series.

Beyond The Horizon: CD Projekt Red states that the world of The Witcher 3 is 35 times larger than that of The Witcher 2, with different regions based on various cultures and mythologies. Our demo showed off forests, coastal regions, and a few small towns, as well as the dynamic day and night cycle and weather systems. Those systems aren't just cosmetic; for example, your boat can be smashed apart on the rocky coasts if you try to take it out during a storm, and werewolves pose a significantly greater risk during the night. Your exploration of the world will be driven by a wide variety of main quests, side quests, and random events, which CD Projekt Red is attempting to blur together.

Side Quests That Mean Something: The majority of our demo focused on an optional side quest that involves Geralt helping a town plagued by murderous creature living in the nearby woods. The townsfolk are split on how to best handle the beast, and it's up to Geralt to investigate the killings, deduce what type of monster is responsible, and choose the best course of action. The side story contains several twists and interactions with the townsfolk, along with a challenging battle against the culprit – a mystical, tree-like monster called a leshen. Geralt ultimately gets paid for his services, but true to the series' intricate storytelling, the outcome of the mission is far from black and white, and Geralt isn't entirely happy with how things turn out. This is just one of countless sidequests that the player can freely skip.

Originally Posted by sakichop
You could spend 3500 but you sure don't need to. Are you building or buying? Are you buying new everything? ( mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers, headphones, etc). Is gaming your only focus?

Who knows what I will buy when it comes out and I do know I don't have too I, bought this one for TW2 and still runs everything without a problem.

I promissed my oldest child he could have this one when this game comes out. I use to build all my own systems but most likely will be lazy and ordering something over priced online after a few drinks.

If you are willing to build it yourself you could build a system that could max this game out for about $800. Even if you don't I recommend not getting a proprietary system since they cost way more then they should for a high end system.

Because other publishers claim something like that won't sell. Take EA for example, their "new" approach is to add multiplayer everywhere otherwise the stuff they fund won't sell - at least that's what they think.

Originally Posted by guenthar
If you are willing to build it yourself you could build a system that could max this game out for about $800. Even if you don't I recommend not getting a proprietary system since they cost way more then they should for a high end system.

I want to shop at the same place where you buy your stuff. I have a 4.6ghz machine with a GTX Titan and I still can't run Witcher 2 at max while maintaining 60fps.

Living With The Consequences: The Witcher series is known for the freedom it affords players to shape the narrative with their actions and choices. The Witcher 3 is no exception. The optional side quest we saw carried both story and environmental consequences. Defeating the leshen lifted its curse on the woods, transforming them into a sunnier, more hospitable environment. However, they also resulted in tragedy for the village; not only was Hilde sacrificed to ensure the leshen would not return, but a young and ambitious villager used the opportunity to kill off the town's elders and take control. Returning at a later time reveals a grim fate for the community in the form of a flashback – the village was eventually raided due to the regime change and its inhabitants were slaughtered. The outcome could have been completely different had the player made different choices – or chosen to skip the side quest altogether.

Bioware has this right: it is about big decisions. The player wants to feel important, it wants the game world to revolve around the PC (and therefore the player)
Every decision is not a choice. For a decision to be a choice, outcomes must be equivalently desirable or feared, tearing the person taking the decision apart.

This is when games want to chew much more than they can. When reading the report, it appears that the player cant fathom the consequences of the decisions. Games can offer a player to take big decisions (here, determining the fate of a village) but it is not a choice as the player is not aware of the stake at hand.

Being able to fathom the consequences of a decision requires a familiarity with the gameworld, a familiarity that a so called RPGs like the witcher cant provide.